Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1887-04-07


mathematical exactness at large fat rock.
1t looked extremely innocent They moved
it and made q little noise.
GDouse yer glim!n they heard voice say.
%Stand here, sis, right by the curtain"
whispered Harry 10 hoi fellers the enemy
is upon youI" he shouted aloud
There was q stumble and push against
the curtain. But in the blind darkness the
amateur robbers could not get out.
snow we've got you where Moses was
when the light went out" said the tantaliz-
ing child. "Guess that conundrum. Say,
boys, where was Moses when the light went
outl"
No answer Shirley lifted the curtain sud.
denly and let light into the proceedings. As
she did so half dozen boys lodged back into
the recesses of an underground hole deep
enough to stand upright in. Among them
were Tom, Percy and Pet Carstone. The rest
quickly made their escape. They SUNK in
silence before a glance of command which
they knew too well to disobey. The cave
looked like junk shop.
Shirley picked up and threw down in rapid
succession, respectively, meat knife, a rusty
pistol, jewsharp and q coil Of rope.
"And here, as live, you've got fathers
sword in this dirt holel Now tell me who did
thisl You, Pet-the boy father used to sing
to sleep in his arms till you were years
old because you were afraid of the dark!
Nice boy you are, aren't your
He hung his head.
The Carstone boys surrendered uncon-
ditionally to General Shirley. Three fallen
heroes marched sullenty and silently In front
of the enemy to the house. They vanished
ignobly to their dungeon cells, otherwise
their beds.
And Shirley-well, when Shirley had dis
posed of them, she went to the room mutually
occupied by herself and the youngest Car
stone, and sat down and laughed as she had
not done in years. 1t IVES the youth in her
| that laughed-the daring, fun loving, eternal
youth
But there was no more Robbers Cave.
The boys had deep grudge at the Presby.
| terian minister How they paid it off re-
mains to be recorded. This devout and
| learned man was extremely dignitied. He
was also particular in his personal appear
ance. What could be more proper in a
teacher Of that gospel which proclaims that
cleanliness is next to godliness? Nothing.
From much delving in lore and much pro-
found thought, the good man had lost his
hair prematurely. The sisters in the church
had it that their pastor had studied the hair
off his head In truth, he was as bald as an
onion.
He may be easily pardoned for seeking to
remedy his misfortune as best he might. The
good man wore wig. Butt was not vanity
that led him to wear wig. 1t was to keep
him from taking cold. He himself said it.
Getting an influenza in the head was bad for
the effectiveness of religious oratory. He
had to be particular on this point. There
ore, no living creature in Linwood had ever
seen the minister without his wig, unless it
was the cat Being a widower may or may
not have emphasized the liability to influenza.
| At any rate, though, nothing could be more
dignifed and decorous and spotless than the
reverend gentlemans appearance, wig and
all. The ladies Of the church took pride in it.
Twas prayer meeting night In the hack
| Of the church was o door, long unused. 1t
was directly in the rear Of the platform
| whereon the minister sat-
| The people were assembled for the begin
ming OF the service. The minister was in his
place. Near the platform, likewise in his
| proper place, sat Deacon Durham, most rigid
and devout Of ALL
It was the impressive moment when the ex.
ercises were about beginning. The minister
had already said "ahem" to clear his throat
Suddenly there came three loud and hollow
raps at the long unused door behind the min
ister The congregation started The like
had never been known before.
The three hollow raps were repeated, like q
| greeting from the spirit world. Being next
the door the preacher himself unfastened it.
| The minister was o man of action. He
pulled the door open hastily. A terrible
white figure stood there, ghastly and gigan.
tic. 1t looked as tall as the meeting house
steeple. An awful spirit arm waved in the
air an instant, ghostly hand swooped down
and clutched the minister's sacred wig and
bore it gently away to realms of air. The
door was closed silently and suddenly by in
visible spirits The minister was left stand
ing there in sight Of all the folk, bald and
shiny.
CONSERVATION seized all. Deacon Durham
recovered himself first. He made a dash fol
the door. The spirit hands held it closed or
the outside. 1t was impossible to open it
The Deacon made dash for the front door
He ran around the outside of the church. Al
was darkness and silence. Sinful hands haG
profaned the church back door, and affixed 6
bolt to the outside.
Over the scene inside the sanctuary mean
time the curtain falls.
There was no preaching next Sabbath
The minister was not well, it was said. Bu
it was said, again, by the goddess that he had
gone to the city to get a new wig.
Yet u fresh proclamation of the sanctuary
froze with horror the marrow of the devou
in Linwood The children assembled fol
Sabbath school as usual. The key of thu
sacred edifice could not be found. Suddenly
when the whole school was waiting, the key
was produced, the door was opened, and th'
;eacher and children were admitted. On til,
pulpit desk-yea, perched upon the ver1
Bible itself-was sleeps head. Upon tn
sleeps head, alas the day! was the identica
wig clutched from the minister's head by tn
spirit hand, prayer meeting night.
But to this day the perpetrators of tn
scandalous outrage are unknown Its origil
remains matter of mystery. That, too,
where Moses was when the light went out-il
the dark. ''.'
CHAPTER XII. rt
A FACE IN THE GLASS.